variants
or ax
plural axes
1
: a cutting tool that consists of a heavy edged head fixed to a handle with the edge parallel to the handle and that is used especially for felling trees and chopping and splitting wood
2
: a hammer with a sharp edge for dressing (see dress entry 1 sense 6e) or spalling stone
3
informal
a
: removal from office or release from employment : dismissal
—usually used with the
Employees with poor evaluations got the axe.
Trump quickly gave him the ax [=fired him] for his incompetence.—
Laura Petrecca
Laura Petrecca
b
: abrupt elimination or severe reduction of something
Unlimited expense accounts, signing bonuses, and office plants—all are getting the ax [=being cut or eliminated] thanks to corporate cost-cutting measures.—Amanda Hinnant
Amanda HinnantNo party was brave enough to offend its supporters by taking an axe to [=severely reducing] expenditure.—The Economist
The Economist4
slang
: any of several musical instruments (such as a guitar or a saxophone)
variants
or ax
axed; axing; axes
1
a
: to shape, dress (see dress entry 1 sense 6e), or trim with an axe
axe stone
b
: to chop, split, or sever with an axe
axe branches from a tree
2
informal
: to remove abruptly (as from employment or from a budget)
The TV program was axed from the new schedule.
Synonyms
Examples of axe in a Sentence
Noun
the company was hemorrhaging money, so 700 employees would soon be given the ax
Verb
The boss told him that he had been axed.
the boss will ax anyone who leaks company secrets
Recent Examples on the WebNicholas Dawidoff, The New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2024
How much does Satya Nadella earn While Nadella personally requested a 50% axe to one aspect of his total compensation, his overall package increased by more than $30 million compared to a year ago.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2024
Oliver then grabs an axe and swings it, smashing the TV.
—Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 18 Oct. 2024
Casey had a long history of criminal record as he was arrested for beating his brother with an axe sledgehammer in 2012.
—Lea Veloso, StyleCaster, 26 Sep. 2024
Oliver raises the axe high in the air, shattering a chandelier.
—Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 18 Oct. 2024
The killer or killers lifted the axe so high for the initial blow that a piece of the ceiling was impacted, according to the magazine.
—Sean Neumann, People.com, 13 Oct. 2024
And in May, a 14-year-old girl from Montenegro was arrested for plotting an attack in Austria, which was allegedly ISIS-inspired, with a knife and axe already purchased.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, 25 July 2024
The Bates Motel Attractions: 25-minute haunted hayride; escape rooms; axe throwing; and the Revenge of the Scarecrows Haunted Corn Trail that features animatronic monsters.
—Isaac Avilucea, Axios, 4 Oct. 2024
Max Goldbart, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2024
Tavares had previously maintained that the group’s 14 brands, including Maserati, Fiat, Peugeot and Jeep were all assets to Stellantis’ portfolio, but in July said poor performers could be axed to cut costs.
—Reuters, CNN, 10 Oct. 2024
Nipper responded in February with a turnaround plan that axed the company’s dividend, laid off staff and cut its plans to grow this decade.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune Europe, 8 Oct. 2024
Netflix has swung the proverbial axed on spin-off sitcom That ’90s Show, which was a sequel from Fox’s long-running That ’70s Show set in the mid-1990s.
—Marc Berman, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024
The largest share of cancellations were coming out of North Carolina’s Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT), which axed 140 outgoing flights.
—Alison Fox, Travel + Leisure, 27 Sep. 2024
The form was finally axed in 2017, although many one-off events still require a Temporary Events Notice.
—Mark Sutherland, Variety, 7 Oct. 2024
That report included information on how the company, then called Twitter, enforced its rules, responded to government requests for information, legal demands to axe content, copyright and trademark notices, and other details.
—William Gavin, Quartz, 25 Sep. 2024
Shares in Phoenix Group dropped on Monday as the financial services giant axed plans to sell its SunLife division.
—Royston Wild, Forbes, 16 Sep. 2024
Noun
At six feet six, with woodcutter’s biceps, Stanton can chop baseballs with such force that the sound resonates like an axe to a melon.
—Nicholas Dawidoff, The New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2024
How much does Satya Nadella earn While Nadella personally requested a 50% axe to one aspect of his total compensation, his overall package increased by more than $30 million compared to a year ago.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2024
Oliver then grabs an axe and swings it, smashing the TV.
—Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 18 Oct. 2024
Casey had a long history of criminal record as he was arrested for beating his brother with an axe sledgehammer in 2012.
—Lea Veloso, StyleCaster, 26 Sep. 2024
Oliver raises the axe high in the air, shattering a chandelier.
—Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 18 Oct. 2024
The killer or killers lifted the axe so high for the initial blow that a piece of the ceiling was impacted, according to the magazine.
—Sean Neumann, People.com, 13 Oct. 2024
And in May, a 14-year-old girl from Montenegro was arrested for plotting an attack in Austria, which was allegedly ISIS-inspired, with a knife and axe already purchased.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, 25 July 2024
The Bates Motel Attractions: 25-minute haunted hayride; escape rooms; axe throwing; and the Revenge of the Scarecrows Haunted Corn Trail that features animatronic monsters.
—Isaac Avilucea, Axios, 4 Oct. 2024
Verb
That show was well-rated and a petition was launched to save it when it was axed.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2024
Tavares had previously maintained that the group’s 14 brands, including Maserati, Fiat, Peugeot and Jeep were all assets to Stellantis’ portfolio, but in July said poor performers could be axed to cut costs.
—Reuters, CNN, 10 Oct. 2024
Nipper responded in February with a turnaround plan that axed the company’s dividend, laid off staff and cut its plans to grow this decade.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune Europe, 8 Oct. 2024
Netflix has swung the proverbial axed on spin-off sitcom That ’90s Show, which was a sequel from Fox’s long-running That ’70s Show set in the mid-1990s.
—Marc Berman, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024
The largest share of cancellations were coming out of North Carolina’s Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT), which axed 140 outgoing flights.
—Alison Fox, Travel + Leisure, 27 Sep. 2024
The form was finally axed in 2017, although many one-off events still require a Temporary Events Notice.
—Mark Sutherland, Variety, 7 Oct. 2024
That report included information on how the company, then called Twitter, enforced its rules, responded to government requests for information, legal demands to axe content, copyright and trademark notices, and other details.
—William Gavin, Quartz, 25 Sep. 2024
Shares in Phoenix Group dropped on Monday as the financial services giant axed plans to sell its SunLife division.
—Royston Wild, Forbes, 16 Sep. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'axe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near axe
Cite this Entry
“Axe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/axe. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
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